WINE DINE AND TRAVEL SUMMER 2020 -- SOUTH AFRICA

One daily activity in Trinidad is to while away
the time on the steps of La Casa de la Musica sipping
mojitos and listening to live music. Dancing
erupted around the plaza soon after sunset, and a
strikingly tall black-skinned woman in an immaculate
chef’s jacket approached each table. “Would
you like to try my gratin of seafood?” asked the imposing
chef whose toque towered over our table.
The cooking class at Casa de Tonia, a private
home converted to a casa particular, dispelled the
memory of the previous evening’s lackluster
gratin! Our professional chef/instructor Eduardo,
flanked by an English translator, demonstrated the
art of cocina criolla using his grandmother’s
recipes. For two hours, he directed us as we sliced
and diced ingredients in his small and well-appointed
kitchen. In no time, we turned out fufu de
plátano, a plantain puree mixed with pork fat and
pork rind, sopa de frijoles colorados flavored with
a mild sofrito pureed peppers, and much more.
Most instructive was his use of latitas, empty cans
of sweet condensed milk instead of a measuring
cup. (So was the ingredients list that called for
“chicken bottoms” instead of chicken thighs!) Our
cooking completed, we retreated to the far end of
the patio, around a massive table set with crystal
and china. When we remarked on the ubiquity of
Moros y Cristianos, instructor and staff burst out
laughing: “El frijol se le hace diario en Cuba!” (In
Cuba, we make beans every day!)
Trinidad once was a hotbed of revolutionaries.
So were the jungle lined hills of Valle de los Ingenios,
which we explored during our excursion to
Topes de Collantes and Parque Guayanara national
park. Our hike took us deep into the lush
greenery, to the exuberant Salto de Caburni waterfall
and the frigid waters of a popular swimming
hole. For this senior citizen (albeit in good shape)
hiking downhill to the falls, then climbing up again,
necessitated more effort than my daily exercise
routine! Luckily, Carlos had planned a restorative
stop at a nearby family-run coffee plantation. After
my first shot of potrerito—a Cuban espresso
spiked with rum, lemon juice, and honey, I was
ready to climb mountains! There was no need, for
our next stop was Carlos’ family farm, a compound
consisting of housing for his 11 family members,
as well as a vegetable garden and small orchard.
Our host proudly showed off a pig pen and a
chicken coop. ““We have to grow our own food.
That’s how we survive,” he explained. Lunch with
his extended family turned out to be a highlight of
our stay.
We had planned to spend our last night at Casa
Carlos y Oralia. On the way back to Havana the
Ernesto (“Che”) Guevara Sculptural Complex in
Santa Clara was a requisite stop. The memorial
houses the remains of this longtime friend of Fidel
Castro’s and one of Cuba’s preeminent revolutionaries.
A youthful uniformed guard was all smiles
when we invited him to pose alongside us.
Carlos’ last requisite stop was at Los Martinez, a
thriving family restaurant by the roadside: “These
people know how to make a Cubano sandwich,” he
proclaimed, as we bit into our warm roll filled with
warm shredded pork and sliced ham smothered in
melted Swiss cheese and fresh pickles, and sipped
goblets of fresh guava juice. Our guide was right
once again.
Carlos Eire’s book “Waiting for Snow in Havana”
describes how the author’s favorite pastime as a
young boy was to have his father drive through the
waves crashing onto the Malecon. Susan had expressed
her wish to do the same. On our last
evening in Havana, we joined a crowd of ebullient
young Cubans running through the waves along
the promenade. Drenched and happy, my friend
and I could leave Havana having fulfilled our own
“fantasia”.
Kitty Morse is the author of 10 cookbooks, and
a staff writer for Wine Dine and Travel.
Susan McBeth is the founder and president of
Adventures by the Book (www.adventuresbythebook.com)
and Novel Network (www.novelnetwork.com)
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